Better Than What?
by SilverUmbra
Summary: Lugia and Ho-oh meet on a peaceful night. Lugia, bitter about the past, compares herself to her counterpart, and realizes that they may both share one thing...


_**Hello! It had been a while since I've posted anything... But, well, here's the next challenge! I realized that I hadn't posted a Lugia/Ho-oh fic yet, so I decided to type one up! Here it is, I hope you like it, and why not give it a try! Now... usually when I pair Lugia and Articuno, I make Lugia male, but in this Lugia is female and Ho-oh male. I Don't know why, I guess I've always imagined her to be. Well, R&R!**_

_**FIC! **_

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The gentle lapping of the ocean and the call of the birds in the sky filled my senses as I lay, sprawled out on the cool, damp sands of the beach. Red eyes closed in relaxation, I let my tail twitch in the grainy tan ground and then let out a deep sigh of pleasure. For the most part, my days were spent under the ocean, keeping water type clans from fighting and guarding my temple, but on good days- like this one- I could come to the surface and lay in the calming moonlight, if just for an hour or so. 

Most knew not to bother me when I attempted to relax during my rare periods of peace, and those who didn't found out instantly, and in a very painful way. Even then, some -Like Mew, for instance- continued to come during these times, and thus usually suffered with an Aeroblast to the face and harsh comments that would make even Giratina flinch.

Most would learn their lesson. But he _never _did.

The flapping of wings brought my attention up to the sky, and with a begrudging sigh I opened my carmine eyes and let my gaze wander towards the dark expanse. Seeming to burst from the wispy clouds, a brightly colored, golden crested bird swept towards me, seeming like the sun itself. I gave a moan, one filled with annoyance and exasperation and turned my gaze into a glare of irritation to match my mood.

"_Just what I need..._" I thought sourly, craning my neck into an 'S' shape and continuing to glare invisible and imaginary arrows at my counterpart. _"A cocky, rainbow turkey to ruin my night..."_

The bird, flaring his wings and banking with expert grace, landed before me in a rustle of gold, green and orange-red feathers. Red eyes, surrounded by black markings much like Celebi, looked at me much like a prince would look at a poor person. I glared back, tail twitching and eyes narrowing into slits.

"Ho-oh." I hissed, my voice dripping and overflowing with disdain. He nodded his head, curling crests bouncing at the movement before surveying my island with boredom. I knew as fact that, from the outside, Whirl Island was not that interesting of a place- more of a common, hostile, bare, cold chunk of rock as opposed to the lush, illuminatingly beautiful mountain that my fire counterpart seated himself upon. Yet... like a book, into the caves was where true, pure beauty resided.

Of course someone as shallow as _Ho-oh_ would _never _understand that.

"Lugia." He replied stiffly, glancing at me in the corner of his red eyes before turning his attention once more to the island. Still lying on my indigo stomach, I rustled my silver feathers and rose to my two, dragon-like legs, still shooting him a glare that could have put lesser beings on fire. All around I was more dragon-like than bird-like, as opposed to _him. _All around, I did not mind, mainly because looking like him, or being like him made me want to vomit. Beautiful and yet shallower than a puddle? No thank you, I'll pass and be ugly.

"What do you want?" I inquired harshly, my wings tucking back to rest neatly next to me. My tail, armed with indigo spikes, slithered to rest in front of me protectively, and my carmine glare increased in intensity. At my question, his own scarlet eyes switched back to my glower, then shot away to rest on the giant circle that was the moon.

"I just wanted to ask you something." He said, lifting his grand head to the sky and clapping his beak a few times. His golden tail feathers- like beams of the sun- rustled, glinting brightly in the moonlight. I squinted against the glow, wondering how feathers could be so reflective and so god damn annoying. At his statement, I switched my eyes to look at him in slight curiosity. Ask? Ho-oh didn't _ask. _Ho-oh assumed- usually things that made him seem great and everyone else stupid and plain and evil.

When I didn't reply, he took that as a sign to continue. I rolled my eyes at this, purely typical in both accounts. Settling comfortably with my head resting on my tail, I waited for him to start his rant on why I wasn't prettier and why I didn't make pretty stuff happen and why I couldn't have my storms be glittery and colorful as opposed to gray and harsh and plain. Surprisingly for me, this rant never came, and his next words made my eyes widen and my head jerk up to look at him.

"Why do you hate me?"

I blinked. The ocean crashed softly, and I wondered faintly where Kyogre was. Probably with Groudon, but a cameo would have been appreciated. Hell, my trio trying to kill me or Registeel attempting to take over the world would have been welcomed. Anything to get me out of this strange scene. Again I could only stare at him, jaws held open in a gape. Finally, realizing that I was not going to answer, Ho-oh looked at my shocked expression in his own gaze of disdain. At this same look I snapped out of my stupor and pointed one wing at him accusingly.

"Let me ask _you _a question,_ Ho-oh." _I spat his name out like something sour, and red eyes flashed angrily. I leaned over, switched my position so that I was towering over him, and then turned my head to the ocean. The same ocean crashed. "If someone always looked down at you, always called you _ugly _and_ hideous_ to your face and behind your back, and even in those moments of peace looked at you like some type of disease... How would you feel about them?"

He was silent.

"I'll answer that for you, because you'll never have to face that, will you? You're beautiful, you're perfect, you're everything I'm not. And you know that, and the way you act towards me shows that in the most obvious way possible. You snort at me. You glare at me. Most of all you treat me like some type of hideous insect that should be destroyed!" I got to my claws again and growled, tail lashing the damp sand. "...And now you come here and _**dare**_ ask why I hate you?"

The silence was deep.

I snorted in disgust, turning my head away and going to the edge of the crashing ocean. I spread my silver wings out wide, let the the ocean spray caress my indigo underbelly and went to dive into the water- and escape my selfish counterpart once more. Before I could, I looked back once and paused. As if sensing my glance, his own red gaze shyly rose up to meet me.

He would never see any more than what laid upon the glow of the sun. He would never know what was hidden deep inside- because he would not look. He didn't care, and he would never see what was inside even the hideous. Once upon a time, he was not like this. He was not conceited and vain and arrogant. Yet, like our friendship, his own personality became drowned in the rainbow radiance of himself.

What happened?

"Ho-oh. Some things aren't so easy to see at first glance." I sighed, lowering my wings and tucking them around my body. He let his glance fall to the golden sands, and shifted restlessly on his black legs. I tilted my silver and indigo head to the side, then slowly went to rest beside him. Once there, I settled down into a sitting position and glanced at him, realizing how different we were, in so many ways. He was colorful, shades of green and orange and red and white and gold and black made up his plumage. Many times I wondered if he dyed his feathers, which was an amusing thought, but even I knew that they came that way. Then, switching my red eyes to myself, I compared his many colors to my two. Silver and indigo. Nothing less, nothing more.

"I've been an ass." He said suddenly, lifting his gaze from his talons and looking outwards towards the moonlit ocean. I concentrated my gaze on him for a moment, simply taking in the way his gold and red-orange feathers reflected the light before turning my own carmine pools to the peaceful scene before me. At his words I let a small smile grace my face and gave a nod and a hum.

"But really. Seriously..." He continued, his voice dripping with disgust in his own actions. He removed his glance on the sea and placed it towards the sky- the same sky that was dark and speckled with stars. He paused, simply staring at the moon for three minutes exactly before letting his glance slip to me. I simply shrugged my silver shoulders.

"How could I act like that? To my counterpart!" Ho-oh's wings twitched slightly, and his golden tail feathers rustled. He lowered his neck in shame that I never saw grace his features, and then, his voice low and full of despair, he spoke. "... And you've been taking it without killing me. Somehow."

"Registeel offered to kill you for two tons of radioactive rock, but I decided that I'd rather not risk it." I murmured, tone half joking and half serious. I had almost taken the deal, and knowing Registeel, she would have found a way to kill the rainbow bird in the most cruel and painful possible. I still wasn't sure why I had refused, probably because Arceus would have tracked me down and given me a horrific punishment for hiring the steel robot as a hit man, but I had.

Did I regret it?

"...Can you forgive me?"

I reared my neck up and stared at him in surprise. Forgiving... It was just one of those things I did, whether or not said individual deserved it. I forgave Lawrence for trying to hurt my trio. I forgave the humans for hurting my ocean. I forgave Mew for stealing my stuff. And... Somehow, I managed to forgive Ho-oh for ever insult that he launched into the air. Maybe... Maybe he was just as confused as I was on why he attacked me so much.

Maybe.

"Let me ask you another question, counterpart." I said, my voice quiet and thoughtful. His glance turned up to look at me, and I tilted my head to the side before throwing out one wing to motion to the ocean. The same ocean glinted and splashed. "Why do you insult me?"

He lowered his head again in a stance of thought and as I waited expectantly, his red eyes looked up at the stars. He flexed his colorful wings with a twitch and, as if he was agreeing with an inner thought, he nodded, the golden crests on his head bobbing. Then, raising his head, he turned it towards me, the moonlight dancing on his golden beak.

"... I'm scared." He muttered, his voice so low that I had to tilt my head down to hear him clearly. Once I absorbed his words I jerked myself backwards, nearly slipping on the wet sand and my mind wheeling in thought. I stared at him incredulously, thinking his words as ludicrous before sputtering. Not very godly, but this was pretty surprising to me.

"Scared of _what?" _I exclaimed, flapping my silver wings and bobbing my silver and indigo head in confusion. "... Being caught? Arceus?_Raikou?"_ That didn't seem likely, mainly because Raikou was an idiot. "What could possibly scare you into being a complete _ass?"_

He muttered something.

"_What?"_

He said it again.

"Speak up, Ho-oh, I can't hear a thing you're saying."

His gold, re-orange head jerked up, and I jumped back as my confused red eyes locked with his burning pools. It was moments when he was angry when you could see the fire in his eyes, and when he was truly beautiful. He snapped his deep yellow beak a few times in irritation before roaring.

"YOU, OKAY?! I WAS AFRAID OF _YOU_!"

Completely shocked at his outburst, I stepped backwards, my eyes wide in confusion. He gave a huff, fluffed up his multicolored feathers and then turned away. I stared at his back in numbed silence before trying to figure out what he had meant from such words. Afraid of me? How could he be? All around I didn't fight that often, and even when I did, I usually didn't do it out of getting fear from others. I would never scare him intensionally... Right?

"Why...?" I murmured, my red gaze finding the sandy ground extremely interesting. I shifted on my silver paws and wrapped my wings around me protectively. Then, waiting for an answer, I raised my eyes up to look at him expectantly. His back was still turned to me, but with a deep sigh that rattled his glorious being, he turned his long neck to look at me.

"I don't like being rejected." He muttered bitterly. "I'm the pretty birdy that everyone loves. One that brings light and luck and happiness to all who see me... Obviously I'm going to get a big head." Another sigh. I stared, still shocked by the 'pretty birdy'. "So, obviously I hate being rejected... which would be exactly what would happen... if I told you the truth. You'd laugh at me, or Aeroblast my rainbow ass to another galaxy all together. " He lowered his head in despair and turned his golden crested being back to the ocean. Despite the fact that he had hurt me so many times, I couldn't stand the sight of him acting so not... Ho-oh.

I slowly approached him and put one wing on his shoulder; this same movement caused his head to snap back to look at me, and red eyes were blank and empty. Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I gave him the kindest look I could manage. "You don't know that."

The great bird of the sun turned his narrowed eyes to the ocean again, and, taking a deep breath like he was ready to jump into the abyss of night, he slowly spoke. "Then what would you do..." He trailed off, and my wing tightened around him in such a way of encouragement. I tilted my head to the side, giving him soft look that I so rarely used before nodding for him to continue.

"If I said... That I loved you?"

I stiffened, eyes narrowing and mind screaming at me to smack him across the face multiple times with my wings before sending him to another dimension. _This was the same rainbow turkey that had insulted you for thousands of years_, my mind argued aggressively. Yet, another voice, small and yet strong told me that this was exactly what I had been waiting for. Under it all... had that always been there?

Meanwhile, Ho-oh was cowering under my silver wing, and his ruby eyes were scrunched close in fear of what would happen next. He was obviously expecting me to kill him, probably take his head off with a chomp of my powerful jaws, yet that didn't happen. When he slowly opened his eyes and went to look at me, he could only gape at the fact that I was not angry. Only thoughtful.

"What... If I said..." I started, my voice soft and wistful as I gazed at him with peaceful red eyes. "... That I loved you back? Then what would _you_ do?"

He stared at me for a few seconds as he attempted to absorb my own words. Then, blinking his red eyes once or twice, a small smile started to spread across his golden beak. The next thing I knew, white and orange feathers clouded my vision as he wrapped me in a gentle embrace. I paused, and then, as both parts of my mind finally settled for a compromise, I returned the show of affection with my own plain, silver, normal wings...

After all, under everything... He and I both knew that this was one thing we _both _shared.

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_**Yeah... I'm not used to working with birds/dragons. Heh, that's why it is called the Challenge, I guess! Well, SU out!**_


End file.
